Gajdos said he consulted with the competent authorities as well as local MP Peter Stumpf, who provided detailed information on the situation, the extent of the violations and the legitimate concerns of the local population.

The minister said he firmly and emphatically calls on the management of BYD to immediately end the environmentally damaging activities and fully comply with their obligations imposed by the authorities.

The Csongrad Csanad County Government Office has filed a complaint over suspicion of environmental damage in the case of the Szeged BYD factory, the press office of the government office said.

The suspicion of environmental damage arose in connection with the use of the excavated soil layer in the construction area, it added.

Minister promises strict examination of BYD plant construction

Rural Development Minister Viktoria Lorincz on Wednesday announced the start of a serious examination of the discovered "irregularities" regarding Chinese car maker BYD’s plant construction in Szeged (S Hungary).

The minister said the Csongrad-Csanad County Government Office has discovered serious irregularities and filed a complaint at the police as there is suspicion that the soil excavated during construction was spread over the surrounding areas without carrying out required tests.

"As the minister overseeing government offices, I am launching an urgent and strict investigation so that we can clarify the possible soil contamination as quickly as possible and whether there was any negligence on the part of authorities," the minister said.

Local MP Peter Stumpf said in a post on social media that according to information he received from the government office, "BYD ignored environmental regulations for months" and spread soil over an area of 208,000 sqm that may have contained carcinogenic compounds in quantities exceeding permitted limits.

Investigation launched against BYD concerning Szeged plant construction

An investigation has been launched into Chinese car maker BYD’s plant construction in Szeged (S Hungary) due to suspicion of causing environmental damage, the Csongrad-Csanad County Police Headquarters told MTI on Wednesday.

The Csongrad-Csanad County Government Office filed a complaint on Tuesday on the matter. They alleged that BYD Auto Hungary did not comply with the requirements of their issued environmental permit, and that soil extracted from the investment area, containing above-limit amounts of aromatic compounds, was dumped in several external locations.

Laszlo Gajdos, the environment minister, on Tuesday said he consulted with the competent authorities as well as local MP Peter Stumpf, who provided detailed information on the situation, the extent of the violations and the legitimate concerns of the local population.

The minister said he firmly and emphatically calls on the management of BYD to immediately end the environmentally damaging activities and fully comply with their obligations imposed by the authorities.

MTI Stock Photo

Source: MTI – Hungary’s national news agency since 1881. While MTI articles are usually factual, some may contain political bias, and readers should be aware that such content does not reflect the position of XpatLoop, which is neutral and independent.

Since the goal of XpatLoop is to keep readers well briefed, right across the spectrum of opinions, MTI items are shared to ensure readers are aware of all narratives within the local media.

XpatLoop believes in empowering readers to form their own views through complete and comprehensive coverage. To facilitate this XpatLoop has a balanced range of news partners, as you can see when you surf around XpatLoop.com

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